To find it really hard to play role play and dolls with 9 year old?

[seriouslynonames]

Dd9 seems to need a lot of attention. She wants me or DH or Dd14 to play with her all the time. Given the age gap Dd14 rarely wants to play what Dd9 wants to play, and Dd9 likes/needs to be in charge so it can be hard work playing with her. She is ND which I think is part of the reason she wants to be in charge, and part of the reason she insists someone should play with her rather than play alone. She can sometimes play alone, but asking her to do so does not go well!

I am not doing too well with chronic illness which causes a lot of fatigue so I find it harder than I should do to be as available as DD wants me to be, in the way she wants me to be - but really the main difficulty I have is that I really don't enjoy what she likes playing! I find board games, puzzles, art/craft, baking, Lego - all sorts of other things easier to do with her. And she enjoys all these things. But when she has decided it's role play she wants, she will not contemplate any other suggestion.

I don't think I'm looking for advice really, as she isn't going to change what she likes, and I don't think I can either! I think I'm just looking to commiserate with others who don't enjoy their kids' favourite games!! Perhaps any ideas about how to make it more fun in my head/reframe it might be useful!

All I can do is sympathise I’m afraid. I also loathe role playing - fortunately, I have 4 girls so o can normally cajole one of them to do it instead!

@Moglet4 ahh great you can rope the other girls into playing! I have missed the boat on that one though!

Have you tried setting up the game while she's at school? So she comes home and the dolls are having a pool party or have set up an animal rescue etc I used to do that with my sons playmobil and it worked quite well

Imaginative play is no fun as an adult! I used to manage by setting a strict time limit i.e. I can play with you while I drink my tea, but when I've finished it I need to get on.

Is the problem that she always has someone to play with though I know you said it doesn't go well if you ask her to play alone but of course it doesn't if she gets her way when she kicks up , I was an only child and had no choice but to play alone had a great imagination spend hours upon hours playing with my Barbie's and role playing very fond memories actually

Dd9 likes/needs to be in charge so it can be hard work playing with her. She is ND

Tbh, kids who insist on being in charge were no fun to play with as a child, either. Role-play is expected to unfold organically, so each player's choices affect the general direction of play. A 'director' telling you off for not saying what she's decided you should say, or going 'stand over there, not there!' is just using you as a prop for their own script. It's very depleting.

Could she be persuaded to script plays with the dolls, taking all the parts and perhaps doing a show for the family? Even better - she's 9 - get her to work out the play, write it down and make storyboards. That should take a good hour or so 😄